Macungie residents raise fuss over being told to remove sheds, fences

Outcry leads borough to hold off on enforcing easement rules in Brookfield development.

July 03, 2013|By Margie Peterson, Special to The Morning Call

A letter sent to more than 100 Macungie homeowners warning them about fences and other obstacles encroaching on property easements provoked enough outcry that Borough Council plans to send a second letter taking a softer approach.

The borough zoning officer sent out the letter in May to residents in the Brookfield development, telling them that if they have fences, sheds or other "encroachments" in an easement on their property, they had to remove them. The letter gave recipients 180 days to take out fences, sheds or other structures from the easements and 90 days to remove plants.

"I believe the borough erred terribly in sending out this letter," Council President Christopher Becker said Monday. He said that he's received three phone calls from residents who felt they were being harassed. "It wasn't our job, I think, to wind up these people," he said.

Brookfield Drive intersects with West Main Street — which is also Route 100 — near the post office.

There was some confusion about what the easements were for. Some of the easements were thought to be for utilities and others for pedestrians.

Resident Roseann C. Schleicher told council that some of the residents who received these letters moved into their homes decades ago and had no idea that there were such rules about easements.

Schleicher is one of the four Republican candidates for borough council who are running unopposed in November, barring a write-in campaign.

"It seems like the borough for many years has not looked at people moving in and what they did," she said. "I don't think people who have been here for so long should now have to change things."

Becker said he asked the zoning officer if the letter was meant as an enforcement letter and was told it wasn't.

Council instructed borough solicitor Patrick Armstrong to draft a letter to go to the same residents saying the borough is investigating the situation and any action is on hold.

Armstrong said he also plans to go to the Lehigh County Courthouse and do research on the original Brookfield development plans that show the property easements so the borough would have a better sense of how to move forward.